Life and Lies at Hogwarts
by HannahMcPherson
Summary: Things are always changing for children at Hogwarts. Take a step through platform's 9 3/4 to see what's really going on.
1. Silver and Ruby

**Chapter 1. Silver and Ruby**

It was raining. Something the students of Hogwarts had grown used to over those spring months, but being used to things doesn't always make it seem better. A perfect example of this, was sitting with her arms crossed and resting on her knees, forehead down, and tears streaming from her puffy blue-green eyes. Her veil of red hair hid her sobs, but also blocked out her excellent view. She was sitting in the middle of an old wooden bridge that stretched itself across a chasm near the front entrance of Hogwarts.

The bridge was covered by a triangular roof, shingled in thick slabs of wood. If not for the clouds and rain, you would probably see the sun peaking just above the horizon. Lily Evans had not slept at all the previous night, for she could not get over the letter that she received from her sister Petunia. A shiver ran up Lily's spine, creating goose-bumps all along her arms and legs. She lifted her head and moved her eyes to her arms, though; she couldn't see them for her thick black robes covering her.

What she _could_ see, surprisingly through all of the darkness, was a tall figure walking towards the bridge through the rain. Lily wiped her tears, and stood up, cautiously letting one foot fall behind the other, backing up slowly. She only stopped when the figure came closer, and she saw the familiar pale face with a hooked nose and long black hair.

"Severus!" she rushed forward, seeming to hop on her tiptoes as to not trip over the boards. "Oh, Severus, It's horrible!"

Severus Snape let out a small noise of surprise as Lily rammed him and started squeezing his midsection.

"What happened?" his face scrunched up in concern as he wrapped his arms protectively around her shoulders, her head resting on his shoulder.

"I was in the common room last night after dinner, re-reading the letter that Tuny sent me, and that sorry good-for-nothing prick James Potter took it!" she let one more tear fall down her cheek as she breathed, her chest heaving against his damp robes.

Severus made a noise in the back of his throat, but waited for her to continue.

"Sev, there were things in that letter about me that I never wanted _anyone_ to know, and HE READ IT!" she buried her face into his shoulder a bit more, nuzzling his neck, her right ear now laying over the Slytherin crest embroidered into his robes.

"Did he read it out loud?" His voice cracked when he said it, and he started the process of mentally beating himself up for that embarrassing moment.

"No… He just looked at me, and his eyes got really wide. Then he made some stupid joke about it, and the whole common room started laughing at me." Lily mumbled.

"Don't mind him, Lils, He doesn't matter." Severus sighed, running his hand along Lily's shaking arm. "I have something for you… That I think may cheer you up…" he started in a soft voice.

Lily loved getting things from Severus. It's not like they were expensive pieces of jewelry, or giant teddy bears… They were more special, because they weren't as special. She had a whole shelf of things at home filled with a number of trinkets and doodads that she had received from him in her lifetime: seashells, rocks, flowers, worthless coins, quills, empty ink bottles with ribbons around them, and so on. They were only special, because they came from him, and they usually came with compliments, invitations to do something rash and exciting, or funny stories with some extremely logical moral.

Lily leaned back only a fraction so that she could see his face. "W-what is it?" she grinned, trying to hide her excitement.

Severus wiped the spaces under her eyes with his thumbs, and then moved them over her cheeks, clearing her face of the tears. "Close your eyes."

Lily followed his command and let her lashes touch the tips of her now smiling cheeks. "Okay." She breathed.

There was a small rummaging noise, and then something that sounded like a rock in a cardboard box as he reached into his pocket and pulled out his gift. He untied the twine around the small package and pulled out the silver ring. He twirled it through his fingers slowly before taking her hand and pushing the ring on her middle finger.

Lily gasped and her eyes shot open as soon as she felt the cool silver come into contact with her skin. "You didn't!"

Severus just smiled, knowing he had done well. Really well.

Without even looking at it, Lily reached up and locked her arms around his neck in a swift movement, then brought her soft lips to his, letting her eyes shut as she let her tongue enter his mouth. For their first kiss, Lily was quite surprised at how comfortable it felt. But, after a while, she figured that if they didn't stop now, they would never make it to potions class.

Severus caught the memo and pulled his lips away, resting his forehead on hers.

"Now, Lily, I know you are a _huge_ fan of interrupting me, and not that I minded this time or anything," he grinned widely, letting out a chuckle. "but, there is more to that little band then silver and some rubies."

Lily was shocked when she heard rubies, how had she not noticed?

She looked down at the ring on her finger, inspecting it carefully. It was silver, but it seemed old and worn, and on the top was a flower-like shape, filled in with blood-red rubies.

"Flower for Lily, Rubies for your fiery locks of annoying frizz!" he laughed, and soon she joined in, as they both remembered the first day they had ever spent in the rain together.

_Lily sat on the front porch of the abandoned house, swinging right next to Severus._

"_I hate the rain, you know." She said, watching the water fall from the sky, trailing along the many boards of the old wood._

"_Why is that? I always thought it to be quite enjoyable." He mused._

"_You see this?" she pointed to her red hair._

"_Your Fiery locks of death?" said Severus, referring to when she talked about trying to brush her hair and how it retaliated by trying to strangle her._

"_Fiery Locks of Annoying Frizz." She huffed._

Lily laughed, knowing that hers and Sev's humor may not have been the best, but with the tingly happy feeling she always got when he was around, they didn't need much else to set them off.

"Severus, I… It's beautiful." She smiled, looking back up into his eyes.

"Now, take it off and read the inside." He nodded, helping her.

When she got off the ring, she looked inside and saw the word "Always" engraved into it. She tilted her head, still smiling.

"Always?" she asked, her voice a bit higher than usual.

"Even though you can't see me, I'll be with you, there for you, and loving you. Always." Words can't explain the feelings that Severus received when his lips met Lily's once more.


	2. No Notes in Potions Class

**Chapter 2.**

**No Notes in Potions Class**

None of the other students noticed Lily and Severus holding hands as they walked to their double potions class for the day. Well, none of them except James Potter, who had come running around the corner and straight between them, breaking their hold on each other's hands, making Lily gasp. Her eyes never left Severus as James grabbed her arm and dragged her around the corner.

"Spill it. What was that letter about?" he breathed raggedly, tired from running to break them apart.

"James! Let go!" said Lily firmly as she shook off his hand, glaring at him in the dark hallway. "Forget about it, okay? Just don't say anything to anyone. That letter was nothing…" she trailed off, voice shaking.

She then turned on her heel and bolted back towards Severus, then grabbed him and sped into the potions room.

* * *

><p>Now, all of the Slytherin and Gryffindor students in their third year were sitting in the potions room writing on their slips of parchment. The teacher had left the room in a hurry, before she even began the lesson, for some emergency faculty meeting. She had assigned them some random bookwork, describing the similarities in the ingredients of Polyjuice Potion and Felix Felicis. James, being done with his in a few minutes, after writing a short sarcastic list, started writing something else. Sirius was relaxing on his right, having not even started, and Remus was on James' left toiling away.<p>

In the next section, across the aisle and two rows up, Lily sat. She was relaxed in her chair with her notebook in her lap. Her head was down, and underneath the curtain of red hair, her shoulder was just barely touching Severus'. Severus was turned to his right, complaining to Jake Gaunt, a nasty fellow Slytherin, about the assignment. Jake was loudly saying how he didn't really care, because he wasn't going to do it anyway.

Jake had stopped mid-sentence on his next statement, because there was a light thud that rang through the room. A small folded piece of paper had landed next to Lily, and her head snapped up to look at it. Jake opened his mouth to say something, and Severus turned to glare at the note, knowing exactly who it was from and what it would say. Lily realized then that she better read it and hope and pray that it was from Arthur Weasley asking about more muggle contraptions, because that was far better than what she knew deep down it was. She was highly disappointed, but not surprised, when she opened it to find the trademark sloppy handwriting of James Potter.

"_Dear Evans,  
>We need to talk about that letter. Whenever you get your hands away from Snivilus long enough, I've got some questions for you.<em>

_-James"_

Lily's eyes were wide with horror as she read, and they nearly popped out of her head when she felt the page being ripped from her hand by Jake Gaunt.

"No notes in potions class, Evans!" he shouted, smirking darkly down at her, pacing towards the front of the classroom.

"Jake! Stop it! Give it back!" she choked out as she pranced frantically around the desk, up the aisle, and towards Jake.

He just laughed, holding it up. "Oh, I see! Secret romance with Potter? Won't Sev be angry?" his eyes darted to a red-faced, enraged, and hurt Severus.

"Give it here." Lily demanded, holding out her hand, and stepping closer to Jake.

When he didn't hand it over, she jumped for it, grabbing at the place above his head where he held it.

"Now, Now, Don't get all fired up. I don't care if you are dating Severus, you need to get out of my space before something bad happens." He said, hopping up and jumping over the desk. He ran to one corner of the room

"Stop it! You _ARSE_! Give that to me!" shouted Lily, running after him.

The whole class was just keeping their heads down except for an awestruck James and Severus, who were both watching with wide eyes and dropped jaws. Jake opened the note, straightened it out and read it. Lily just stared in disbelief.

"Got secrets, do you, Mudblood?" Jake spat, throwing it on the teachers desk, and then he pulled out his wand.

He pointed it and said the words, setting the piece of paper on fire. Lily just stopped, tears rimming her eyes, watching and shaking. In a moment, after the paper had burned and most of the students had looked up, she charged at him, fists clenched by her side. Jake thought quickly and slung his wand towards her, a roaring whip of fire slinging out of it in a split second, and swiping across her chest, knocking her to the ground.

Later she would find a purple bruise following a similar path. James leapt to his feet, pulled out his wand and hexed Jake with anything that came to his mind, and then helped Lily up and out of the room. She gave her now wet, puffy eyes a chance to scan the room of shocked faces, at last her eyes falling on Severus, who had his hung watching his clenched fists.


End file.
